Meet Girl Talk’s 2019 National Leader of the Year
We are thrilled to announce that Claudia Qi has been named Girl Talk’s 2019 National Leader of the Year! Claudia is a Girl Talk Ambassador and a Leader of the CHS Girl Talk Chapter in Temecula, CA. We are so proud of Claudia and inspired by her take on leadership, mentorship, service, and authenticity!
As a leader, “Girl Talk taught me that leadership is not a performance, it’s a constant habit that requires persistence, integrity, and daily mindfulness. It was through this experience leading my club that I saw how mentoring and leadership wasn’t just a singular skill for positions of power or missions. It was about propelling those around you in every facet of your life to become who they need to be, and very well can be, in any given moment.“
As a mentor, “My mentoring relationships were incredibly rewarding and a key component of my high school career. While I navigated stress, relationships, and mental health issues during my average school day, after school, I became empowered by using my experiences to help other girls understand their own issues. I learned that mentoring isn’t just about giving one-dimensional and opinionated advice, but rather it’s helping the mentee answer those questions for themselves as a personal advocate who closely understands what they’re going through.”
In service, “In our Girl Talk Chapter, I promoted doing acts of service to show how our club could translate our leadership lessons and principles into real actions that would tangibly affect our community for good…It [reminds] us, as leaders, that we too can still put our minds to anything we aim for when we have each other as support and encouragement, as well as having it benefit our community…greatly as well.”
In authenticity, “To me, being authentic means detaching yourself from your ego and allowing yourself to be who you are without restraint. As a mentor, my commitment to self-growth paid off when I realized that my middle school girls benefited from having a role model that wasn’t trying to perpetuate a stereotype or any one-ideal for high school popularity. I was able to show them that being successful means only being true to yourself with pride. The diversity of our club demonstrated that as well, and I always feel so happy knowing that our group of mentors represent so many of the different ways our girls can grow into themselves without shame about their interests or quirks.”
“I know for certain that my experience in this lovely program has transformed me into a stronger, more confident woman. Growing up in the States as a Chinese-American girl with ADHD made my middle school experience focused on figuring out my identity, or rather figuring out my multiple identities which conflicted with one another…[N]othing taught me more about how to truly usher in a new part of my personality, that was much more brazen and outspoken, than Girl Talk. Girl Talk truthfully took the part of me that held me back from sharing my experiences with the world and replaced it with the strength to realize that there were others who could benefit from my mentorship and leadership. It makes me feel like I’m apart of a larger legacy of confident, trailblazing women in the 21st century doing their part in ensuring that the next generation of girls can get a head start in fulfilling their ambitions.”
Congratulations, Claudia! Thank you for all you have given to Girl Talk as a Leader, Ambassador, and inspiration. We cannot wait to see where the future takes you!